


the most wonderful time of the year

by peppermintpatties



Category: Red White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Morning, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Fluff and Humor, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hot Chocolate, M/M, Mistletoe, Post-Canon, Sickfic, Sleepy Cuddles, Snow, Snowball Fight, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-03
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 10:55:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 15,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27849774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peppermintpatties/pseuds/peppermintpatties
Summary: "Something about an old-fashioned Christmas is hard to forget." —Hugh Downsa series of oneshots about alex and henry as they celebrate the holiday season with their loved ones in New York and in other wintery parts of the world
Relationships: Alex Claremont-Diaz/Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor
Comments: 30
Kudos: 96





	1. a cotton-headed ninny muggins

**Author's Note:**

> hey, guys! i've mentioned somewhere in a previous work that i'd be coming up with christmas fics and here they are!! i'm so happy i was able to make it. the oneshots can be read in whatever order you prefer, but the whole thing's gonna be completely up on the 25th, so i hope you'll all stick with me until then. thank you so much for all the kudos and comments on my works. they mean a lot to me 🥺
> 
> i hope you enjoyed this one! more coming soon :)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> List of Christmas movies for the Uncultured Holiday Swine Prince Henry of Wales to Watch  
> Prepared by: Alex Claremont-Diaz, Santa’s Favorite Elf
> 
> 1\. A Christmas Story  
> 2\. The Polar Express  
> 3\. Miracle on 34th Street  
> 4\. Home Alone  
> 5\. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York  
> 6\. Home Alone 3  
> 7\. How the Grinch Stole Christmas  
> 8\. Elf  
> 9\. A Christmas Carol  
> 10\. Santa Claus: The Movie

It was a quiet and peaceful morning at the brownstone right up until Alex Claremont-Diaz opened his mouth to say something either stupid, insufferable, or dirty.

Alex and Henry decided to spend the whole day just staying at home while outside, New York continues to transform itself into a magnificent winter wonderland. At first, the idea seemed so appealing to the both of them given that it’s been weeks since they really had quality time for each other without interruptions from their respective responsibilities. However, leave it to Alex and Henry to treat a free day as something that still needs to be considered productive. It wasn’t their fault, in their defense, since they were both thrusted into such busy and hectic lives as a Prince and the First Son.

“Soooo,” Alex drawled out. “What are we gonna do today?”

They were both on their dining table having breakfast while David is playing with a new toy under the table. This was one of those times wherein Alex was the one to prepare their breakfast (a tower of pancakes oozing with butter and maple syrup), while Henry took care of their drinks (tea for him and coffee for Alex).

Henry took a sip of his tea. He raised an eyebrow at Alex and said, “What, you don’t have any law school work today?”

“Nah, the deadlines for my presentations are not yet for another week and I’ve already did some advance reading for the case study I’ve been assigned to,” Alex said. “So, I’m all yours today, baby.”

“I’m sorry.” Henry put down his mug to be able to make a show of seeming like he was looking for someone far away, then he looked at Alex. “Hi, excuse me, but have you seen my boyfriend? Curly hair, brown eyes, short, got a fire under his ass, can never shut up, nose stuck in textbooks, eyes glued to lecture recordings even when asleep?”

“How many times do I have to tell you that five nine is average, you giant motherfucker,” Alex scoffed and added, “But yes, Wales, I am free today. Is that so hard to believe?”

Henry merely gave him a look that says _I’m the one who’s pestering your ass every damn night to go to bed, how stupid do you think I am?_

Continuing their silent conversation, Alex grinned at him as if to say _You love my ass, anyway._ Henry looked heavenward and sighed heavily. Alex threw a pancake slice at him.

“What’s the plan, Your Highness? Need any extra hand at the shelter? A fact checker for your book?”

Now, it was Henry’s turn to look sheepish. “Actually, I also don’t have any work planned for today.”

“AHA!”

“But I was thinking, erm, do you wanna watch Christmas movies?”

Alex smiled. “Of course, whatever you want. You have anything in mind?”

“Well, I was thinking about the classic ones?”

“Oooh yes, yes! Pretty sure they're on Netflix.”

They settled on the couch, bringing with them their drinks “for additional coziness.” Alex gave Henry the control so he could play whatever movie he likes, although after a few minutes he still hasn't chosen anything.

Alex cleared his throat. “You need help?”

At this, Henry looked kind of shy. “The thing is… er, I haven’t really seen any of these, so I really don’t—”

“Wait, what?”

“I haven’t a clue what any of these is about. Other than the fact that they’re set during the holidays, of course.”

“So,” Alex was now sitting up straight renewed with energy. “You’re telling me that you have not—in your twenty three years of existence—seen any classic Christmas movies?”

“Uhm, yes? But it’s not that I don’t want to! It’s just that back in the UK, our tradition is either a Harry Potter marathon, Mr. Bean, or James Bond.”

“Huh.”

“Yup.”

“Mr. Bean, huh?”

“Oh, shut up.”

“Well, hand me the remote then, Your Highness, because today, I am going to give you a crash course on Christmas movies.”

So, Alex and Henry spent the rest of the day sprawled and tangled up in their soft couch with a movie list by their side.

_A List of Christmas movies for the Uncultured Holiday Swine Prince Henry of Wales to Watch_

_Prepared by: Alex Claremont-Diaz, Santa’s Favorite Elf_

_1\. A Christmas Story_

_2\. The Polar Express_

_3\. Miracle on 34 th Street_

_4\. Home Alone_

_5\. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York_

_6\. Home Alone 3_

_7\. How the Grinch Stole Christmas_

_8\. Elf_

_9\. A Christmas Carol_

_10\. Santa Claus: The Movie_

They only took breaks when it was time for lunch, when the other one has to pee, and the time when it was David’s turn to do so. Alex explains to Henry the iconic scenes, their cultural impact (he and Nora researched about it to present to Zahra, the official Christmas Grinch of the White House), and what his personal rating is for each of them considering the movie’s (1) holiday ambience, (2) quotable lines, and (3) incorporation of Santa Claus.

Henry found all of this so endearing and felt very much grateful to experience all of this for the first time with Alex. He told him that and was rewarded with a kiss that tasted like hot chocolate and marshmallows. However, Henry begins to regret it when Alex restarted the movie _Elf_ back to the beginning just as they reached the credits scene. Again.

“Can we please watch something else now? We’ve seen this thrice today already,” Henry said miserably.

Alex, whose attention was wholly on their television for the past ten hours, said, “Nope. No can do. God, why haven’t I watched this for the past couple of years? Forgot how much I love this movie when I was a kid.”

“But we still have the others—”

“Not now, Arctic Puffin!”

“ _You’re_ a son of a nutcracker,” Henry muttered, not intending for Alex to hear, but failed.

Alex turned to him and grinned. “It’s just nice to meet another human who shares my affinity for elf culture.”

“Not doing this.”

“Oh come on, Henry,” Alex whined. “Just go with it, then later I’ll let you watch Mr. Bean.”

“You sit on a throne of lies! You stink! You smell like beef and cheese, you don’t smell like Santa.” Henry tried his best to recall the lines in a horrible, horrible American accent.

Alex laughed. “You’re an angry elf, babe.” And then added, “Also a cotton-headed ninny muggins.”

“Well I think you’re beautiful,” Henry said softly. “And I feel really warm when I am around you and my tongue swells up.”

Alex kissed him on the nose and whispered, “You have such a pretty face. You should be on a Christmas card, baby.”

They weren’t able to finish the list tonight.


	2. the world is your snowball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Don’t you dare throw that snowba—goddammit!” Alex let out a hearty laugh as he listened to Henry cursing him.
> 
> Blue eyes met brown, and then, “It’s on.”

It’s snowing in New York.

Upon opening his eyes, Alex Claremont-Diaz was greeted with the sight of fresh white snow falling on the ground, getting thicker and thicker by the second. If it were not for the tight grip of his boyfriend around him, he would’ve been outside of the brownstone by now, disturbing the pile of snow and making snow angels despite the looks he would receive from the people outside. He didn’t care, though. It was rare for him to experience snow, given that he’s lived in the warmer parts of his country all his life. Sure, there were instances wherein it snowed in D.C., but not like this. Alex supposed it must’ve been Henry’s British ass bringing with him all the wintry aspects of London.

He gently nudged the sleeping man beside him. “Henry,” Alex shook his shoulder a bit. “Wake up.”

Henry grumbled sleepily. “Time’s it?”

“Uh, seven? Seven thirty?”

“The bloody hell are you waking me up for then?” Henry whined, tugging him back to bed. “Thought it’s our free day today?”

Alex waved his hand even though the person he’s talking—well, attempting—to has his eyes closed. “It is, babe, and we can chill later or whatever you want, but look! It’s snowing, Henry! Real snow!”

Though Henry still wishes to stay in bed a few hours more, he couldn’t help but open his eyes, only so he could witness the look of excitement on Alex’s face. His boyfriend, ever since they’ve moved to New York, has been keeping up with weather forecasts as soon as fall season started. He’s been trying to predict for himself if it would snow in New York this year. They even made a bet on it. Well, it was kind of one-sided because Henry never got to put in any input.

 _Okay, I bet it’s we’re gonna have a really snowy winter in New York. Trust me, I just know it. If that comes true, then you’ll gonna have to play in the snow with me._ Henry had no choice but to sigh and agree on it, not having the heart to point out that it’s not that much of a bet since he also wishes it’s going to snow. To be honest with himself, Henry’s pretty sick of the extra gloomy London weather during winter, but there’s just something so special about spending winter with the love of your life.

Speaking of, the said love of his life is currently dragging him out of their bedroom and down the stairs. In his sleep-addled state, Henry was still processing everything that’s happening as Alex wraps him in a coat, gloves, scarf, and bonnet before pushing him out the door.

“I think I’m gonna cry.” Alex fake sniffed.

Henry rolled his eyes fondly and took Alex’s hands. “Did you really just wake me up to drag me outside in the cold?”

Alex kissed his knuckles before letting go. Scoffing, he said. “Of course not, baby. I’m not an asshole. I also brought you out here to do this!” And without any warning whatsoever, he bent down to cup a handful of snow, hastily shaped it into a ball, and threw it in the face of the Prince of Wales.

The moment Alex let go of his hand, Henry didn’t miss the mischievous glint in his boyfriend’s eyes and immediately knew the bastard was up to something.

“Don’t you dare throw that snowba—goddammit!” Alex let out a hearty laugh as he listened to Henry cursing him.

Blue eyes met brown, and then, “It’s on.”

This time, it was Alex’s turn to be utterly gobsmacked as a snowball flew from Henry’s hands to hit him square in the face. He knew he shouldn’t have been surprised—his ass had it coming, and honestly, this is what he gets for dating someone who’s as competitive as him. “You could’ve missed my hair, you little shit,” Alex tried to say grumpily, but failed. What he did manage though, is another snowball thrown at Henry’s back this time since the other man was busy refilling his arsenal.

Henry turned to him and smirked. “This one’s for”—he threw his biggest snowball yet aimed directly at—“America’s ass.” Feeling proud of himself for that one, Henry even made it a point to exaggerate wiping the snow from his gloves while looking so smugly at Alex, who by now, has real tears from laughing too hard.

Because he was still preoccupied with rearranging his scarf, Henry noticed too late that the next thing that would be thrown at him wasn’t anymore a snowball; rather, it was Alex himself. Henry let out an _oomph_ before wrapping his arms around Alex and completely collapsing together on the snow. If anyone were to pass by the front of their brownstone, they’d see the First Son of the United States and the Prince of Wales tangled up and giggling too much—not really the scene one would’ve expect from two people in a snowball fight. But then, Alex and Henry had this ability to turn mundane things into something so special.

His laughter finally subsiding, Alex turned to Henry and said, “I knew you kept me for my sweet, sweet, ass.”

“I thought that was Shaan?”

“Zahra beat me to him,” Alex said sadly.

“Oh, yes. I’m terribly sorry you had to find out this way.”

“S’okay.” Alex shrugged. “I still won,” he stated as a matter of fact.

Henry gaped at him. “No, you didn’t! You tackled me into the snow, that’s hardly winning.”

“I have you under me right now,” Alex smirked. “That’s basically the same as winning.”

Henry burst out laughing. “God, I hate you.” And then proceeds to kiss Alex so sweetly he practically contradicted what he just said.

“Yeah, I’m really having a terrible time believing that.” Alex’s eyes were bright and so, so alight with happiness.

The two of them stayed like that for a while, taking advantage of their seemingly quiet neighborhood that particular morning, melting in each other’s arms as the snow melted around them.


	3. santa drank the eggnog

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “—you know, the idea of Santa Claus is pretty messed up. It’s a fat man who breaks into your house with presents made by tiny people who know if you’re bad or good.” Hiccup. “How do they know that, huh? Do they put surveillance cameras on the gift they throw down the chimney?” Another hiccup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not from the US/UK, so i'm sorry if i got some facts wrong! please feel free to correct me :)

Alex knew that he and Henry were quite different in terms of cultural upbringing. It wasn’t a bad thing, though if he were honest, it does cause a lot of arguments during the holidays. They could be seen in the middle of Central Park, holding hands through the snow, and people on social media would think they’re whispering sweet nothings to each other, but the truth is they’re debating on whether the proper name for Santa was Santa Claus or Father Christmas ( _Henry, I love you, but if you call him that one more time I’m gonna tell Bea to cancel your Jaffa cake packages)_. Or that time when they were at a grocery and they passed by the dairy section, which reminded Alex that they had to leave out milk and cookies for Santa on Christmas Eve, but Henry told him the stockings are more important.

If anything, their group of friends were highly amused by this as they often took their debates to their group chat. “Just not in the bedroom, right?” Nora said, her eyebrows wiggling suggestively. This happened during a previous video call, a rare thing since they were all scattered throughout the globe (Well okay, not really, but in the US and UK at least).

Henry shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know. It seems to be spicing things up, I must say.”

June and Bea both groaned, clearly not wanting to know any details about their respective brother’s sex life. Pez and Nora, as always, encouraged for more.

It was a surprising turn of events when Alex called for a timeout. In his defense, he had a pretty important reason to do so because he found out that not only does Henry not have eggnog every Christmas, he can’t remember the last time he tried one—or if he was even able to try it at least once in his life. _What, we can’t have the queen go down with diabetes?_ Alex joked. So, he made it his mission to get Henry to like it. Screw the fact that it’s actually a British drink.

It happened one morning. They were both preparing a couple of festive food and beverages to bring to a party one of Alex’s friends from law school was hosting later that night. Henry immediately volunteered to be in-charge of the pastries and Alex supposed he only wanted to live out his Great British Bake Off fantasies, but he let him be. That left him with the drinks then. Alex decided to just whip up his go-to festive drink.

“What is _that_?” Henry asked looking so appalled at the thought of eggs going into his drink.

“Only _the_ best thing about Christmas, baby,” Alex said, licking a blotch of cream that got onto his thumb.

“You mean that… concoction… is something that you consider to be a festive drink?”

Alex huffed, crossing his arms. “Like dried leaf juice is any better.”

“Tea,” Henry groaned. “It’s tea, Alex. Please stop calling it that.”

“Never,” Alex grinned. “Your face is always priceless whenever I say that. And anyway, what’s not to love about eggnogs? Milk, cream, sugar, egg whites, egg yolk, _cinnamon_. The stuff of dreams, man.”

“But it sounds so… sweet,” Henry cringed.

Alex raised an eyebrow. “Says the guy who’s currently adding two cups of sugar for one batch of cookies.” The bastard had the nerve to flush and Alex would’ve teased him about it some more if not for—“Tell you what, Wales.”

Henry raised an eyebrow at this.

“Try one cup of my eggnog, and if you don’t like it, I’ll agree to post a video of me singing Auld Lang Syne,” Alex grumbled the last part out. Henry has been playing it through the speakers of their entire brownstone in hopes of getting Alex to acquire it as his last song syndrome. The latter is staying strong, but he can’t deny it’s getting quite catchy.

“You got yourself a deal.” Henry held out his hand for a handshake. Alex took it. He never took his eyes off Henry as the other man got a glass of eggnog, drank it all up with a grimace, which slowly turned into an expression mixed between surprise and wonder.

“What the hell,” Henry said softly, making heart eyes at the now empty glass. Alex grinned. He was about to shout out a very smug _I told you so_ , when Henry continued, “I want to marry this eggnog.”

Alex scowled playfully. “Now _I’m_ regretting this.” It was Henry’s turn to grin.

The hours passed since they got back to preparing their contributions. Alex was pouring out the last batch of the eggnog onto the remaining empty cups, when he noticed that the rest of the cups were also… empty? Wait, what?

It was just then he realized, guiltily, that Henry was actually ranting about something, but he doesn’t have a clue what it was all about because kinda zoned out. Got a bit too concentrated on measuring out the brandy he adds to the eggnog. Alex was just about to apologize and ask Henry to repeat what he said when he noticed a blotch of cream on his nose. And the empty eggnog glasses were beside him.

Oh, shit.

“—you know, the idea of Santa Claus is pretty messed up. It’s a fat man who breaks into your house with presents made by tiny people who know if you’re bad or good.” Hiccup. “How do they know that, huh? Do they put surveillance cameras on the gift they throw down the chimney?” Another hiccup.

“Uh, babe?”

Henry stopped gesturing wildly to reply, “What?”

“Exactly how much eggnog have you had tonight?”

Henry made a show of counting with his fingers, still not realizing he’s also sporting a very thick, creamy mustache. “A f-few glasses, why?”

“Those are spiked,” Alex said, then immediately bit the inside of his cheeks to keep himself to bursting out a laugh right then and there.

His boyfriend turned pink. Alex wasn’t sure if it was due to the alcohol or because the bastard had the nerve to feel guilty now about drinking all the stuff Alex made for the event later. “Oh.”

Alex grinned. “Leave it to you to get drunk even before attending the _actual_ party.”

“M’not drunk,” Henry grumbled and went to find David to lecture him about barking should a huge man in red ever break into their house on Christmas. Also, to not drink the milk or eat the cookies because he wants to prove Alex wrong that Santa, or whoever the hell goes inside people’s houses during Christmas Eve, doesn’t care about the food.

It was quite a scene to watch. Alex give himself a mental pat on the back for having recorded everything, and oh, what the hell. He drank the only glass of eggnog left. He deserves it.


	4. hang up a mistletoe if you’ve got somebody

“What the hell are you doing?”

Henry expected a lot things since December came, as the person he was living with seems to magically transform into Santa’s best elf. Like a Christmas version of being a teacher’s pet, which Henry teases Alex about. What he didn’t expect, however, is to wake up and see almost every inch their brownstone covered with either twinkling lights, fake hollies and ivies, or snowflake decals. He spotted the person behind it amidst all the chaos caused by setting up a freaking Christmas village.

Alex looked up at him and his eyes brightened. “Oh good, you’re awake! I need you to help me find the missing baker.”

Henry stared at Alex as if he’d just grew a second head. He absolutely cannot do this without his morning tea. “ _Come on, Hen,_ ” Alex whined out to him when Henry walked out of the living room and into their kitchen without saying a word.

“Nope, tea first, love,” Henry called out to him as he was pouring hot water onto his vanilla tea bag. Alex rolled his eyes at this even though his boyfriend couldn’t see. “Where’d you get that anyway?”

“Uhm, eBay?” Alex looked sheepish in admitting this.

Henry laughed. “Really? You couldn’t just get small ones for the shelves?”

Alex scowled and rummaged through the boxes, searching for another missing piece. “Now, where’s the fun in that?”

“You know I’m kidding. Anyway, do you think there’s still space for these?” Henry reached into his pocket to retrieve three small figures. They were unmistakably him, Alex, and David.

Alex softened at this. He took them from Henry. “I know just where to put it, baby.” And places them near the huge Christmas tree at the center of the village, with figurine Alex and figurine Henry clearly under a tiny mistletoe.

Of course, Henry didn’t miss it. He raised an eyebrow at Alex. “I see what you’re implying there, sweetheart. _And_ I also didn’t miss the one you put up in our bedroom.”

Alex gaped at him. “What?! But I you weren’t meant to notice it yet, I had a plan and everything!” He groaned dramatically.

“Well first of all, the size of the mistletoe you put in there is not really subtle. And second, I’m an insomniac, Alex. Staring at the ceiling is like counting the sheep for me. Of course I’d notice.”

“Huh,” Alex finally says. “Remind me again why you’re so against kissing under the mistletoe? If I remember correctly, you’re the sappy romantic one in this relationship.”

“I’m not _against_ it,” Henry shrugged. “I just think it’s weird that people are obliged to kiss just because they were both under the same plant at the same time.”

“Is that so?”

“I don’t like that look.”

“Alright, Your Highness, let me propose a deal with you.”

“I really don’t want to.”

“Shh, you don’t actually have a choice in this, baby.”

Henry sighed resignedly. “What have you got then?”

“Hmm let’s see.” Alex drummed his fingers on the table. “Since you’re so against the prospect of kissing under the mistletoe—which you’re wrong about, by the way—you have to avoid getting caught by me under a mistletoe in our home. If I do, you’ll have to agree recreating every cliché Christmas movie tropes there is so I can blackmail you in the future.”

Henry looked at him suspiciously, but he didn’t fool Alex with the way he gulped a bit loudly at the mention recreating movie scenes. “That’s it?”

“Oh yes,” Alex grinned wickedly. “That’s it.”

Turns out, it really was it. The challenge was that simple. Although, one has to consider the fact that Alexander Claremont-Diaz is set on making his boyfriend lose, and anybody who knows Alex would know that once his mind is set on something, he’s not going to give it up until he gets it. Right now, what he wants is a kiss from Henry under the mistletoe because goddamnit, if he was going to be in an open relationship with a fucking prince he might as well take advantage of all the clichés that come with it.

And so, he began to work. Later that afternoon, he went out to a nearby mall and got all the mistletoe being sold in a store. Cash gives him a look when he saw Alex walk out of the store, shopping bags in hand that didn’t really mask what he bought. “I don’t even want to know,” he said, but as if he couldn’t help himself, added, “That’s kinky, man.”

Alex laughed. “God no, it’s not like that. Really.”

“Oh, thank God,” Cash said in relief. “I’m pretty sure people already have photos of you up by now, and I really, _really_ don’t want to explain to Zahra what we were doing today.”

*

One of the things Henry loves about Alex is his stubbornness, but when it was directed at him… not so much. This further proves to be true when he opens their front door and was greeted with what he assumed to be hundreds of mistletoes all crammed and hanging from their ceiling and one very smug-looking Alex with his arms crossed.

Henry gaped at him. “This is cheating!” One step into their brownstone and he’d immediately have a mistletoe under his head.

“No, it’s not,” Alex singsongs. “Technically, we didn’t set a limit for the number of mistletoes I could put up,” he shrugs.

“It’s freezing out here, you insufferable bastard!” Henry exclaimed.

Alex walked a few paces towards where Henry was, stopping just before the door. “You could come in, you know. I’m not stopping you, baby.”

Henry narrowed his eyes at him. “You know what,” he says. “No.”

“No?” Alex raised his eyebrows at him.

“Nope, you’re not winning. _I am_ ,” Henry said and was just about to close the door when he tells Alex, “Love you.” And then shuts himself out in the snow. He can hear Alex laughing behind the door and looked up to see him peeping through the window.

“Hey babe, if you die out there, please tell me I get to have your comfy sweatshirts,” Alex shouted.

“Not a chance!” Henry yelled back. Since he’s got nothing better to do and it would be stupid of him not to go somewhere warm, he decided to head off to a coffee shop. He needs a plan after all. Hours later, what he came up with was this:

  1. _Go back to the brownstone late in the night when he’s sure Alex and David has already gone up to their room._
  2. _Be very quiet as he takes down all the mistletoes off their ceiling._
  3. _Go up to their room and proclaim his victory over Alex._



_Pretty foolproof_ , Henry thought to himself happily.

He checked his phone again and saw that the only messaged he got from Alex was two hours ago. It was only a devil emoji. He packed up his things and walked back to their brownstone. Slowly, he slot in his key and walked very, _very_ quietly. It was all well and good. He already put down his things on the sofa. Now, he was working on removing his winter gear when suddenly an unmistakable voice from behind him whispered, “Got you.”

Damn it. Whether it was because he got caught or because Alex’s voice was incredibly sexy Henry didn’t know, didn’t have time to ponder because as soon as he turned around and met Alex’s smile, he forgot why he was against these things in the first place.

“I believe, Your Highness,” Alex continued, “that we are currently under a mistletoe.” He wrapped both of his arms around Henry’s waist. The latter let him.

Admitting defeat, Henry played along, not able to keep his smile from showing. “Oh, yeah? And what are you going to do about it?”

Alex pulled him by the scarf and whispered, “Just this,” before kissing Henry.


	5. without hope or agenda

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Henry. Hey. Baby look at me. I’m right here,” Alex said with a bit of urgency when he saw that the rise and fall of Henry’s chest were becoming less labored and more still. His skin was paler and tinged with sweat. The full lips that Alex loves so much were showing bits of blue. “The ambulance is already on the way and Shaan’s gonna meet us there. We’re taking you to the hospital, okay? You’re gonna be alright. You have to, Henry,” Alex’s voice cracked.
> 
> Henry couldn’t anymore speak at this point.

Henry was having a really shitty week.

He’s been feeling awful for days now. His head has been pounding non-stop. His lungs decided to take a vacation from being properly functional. His nose could probably give public toilets in NYC a run for their money for being clogged as hell. Also, he has already used up—as of now—six tissue rolls for the past three days, which, Henry thinks a little bit deliriously, couldn’t possibly be good for the environment.

What makes things even worse—aside from his deteriorating health, of course—was that Alex is not here. He had some things to do for his mom that required him to be at the White House for a week. Although that may be a good thing because Henry wouldn’t want Alex to catch whatever the hell he has anyway. He may have guiltily avoided video calling Alex because Henry doesn’t want him to worry and because if his boyfriend knew about his current state, he would no doubt catch a flight to New York, leaving all his important First Son duties behind. Henry really doesn’t want to be on the bad side of the president of the United States.

Today is now Thursday and even before he managed to open his eyes, Henry already knows he’d be spending another day wrapped up in a blanket on the couch. He felt even worse today because his throat decided to join the party. Henry knows in his sensible brain that nursing a fever this bad for three days should have made him alarmed by now, but he still decided to just let it pass.

He didn’t know how long he fell asleep, just that someone was shaking him awake. But only one other person besides him knows their security password, so it must be—no, he’s probably still—

“Henry,” someone said. He would know that voice anywhere. Forcing his eyes to open a bit, it was indeed Alex.

Henry tried to sit up, but Alex gently pushed him back down. Frowning, his boyfriend said, “You’re burning up, baby. How long have you felt like this?” Alex was now gauging his body temperature with the back of his palm on his forehead.

“Alex?” Henry whispered hoarsely. “I thought you won’t be back until Saturday,” he managed to finish before his body racked with coughs, but Alex was immediately as his side, rubbing his back soothingly.

“We finished early and turns out I’m needed here more,” Alex said. “When was the last time you drank some medicine?”

“Hmm?” Henry replied sleepily. “Er, yesterday afternoon? Think it’s all gone now.”

Alex frowned. “Does Shaan know about you being sick?”

Henry shook his head to reply, but immediately regretted it. God, he doesn’t know what would kill him first—his head or his throat. “Don’t want to bother him with this.”

“Baby,” Alex chided him in the most affectionate possible way. His next words were along the lines of _it’s not a burden to take care of you_ but decided against it. He’ll have another time to reassure Henry about this. What he needs to do now is give him some water and find him medicine and heat some canned soup. And he did just that as well as convinced Henry to finish at least half of his soup. Alex wrapped him up in blankets afterwards and he was just about to head back to the kitchen when Henry gripped his wrist.

“Don’t leave,” Henry whispered hoarsely before coughing into his elbow. Alex couldn’t say no to that.

He waited for the medicine to kick in before checking Henry’s temperature, which Alex found to have improved. His mind was able to ease a little, though he spoke too soon. Henry’s cough only got worse to the point wherein he’s almost completely lost his voice. Alex felt helpless. He could only do so much as rub his back and give him lukewarm water and endless cuddles. Henry, of course, kept on insisting that he stay away because he doesn’t want Alex to get his germs and all that bullshit. Alex would just roll his eyes and hold him even tighter.

Alex didn’t know exactly what time it was when he woke up to Henry wheezing like his life depended on it. He was sitting up against the headboard, the sheets were tangled around him except for where he was gripping them so tightly. Alex immediately sat up. “Henry,” he said, not bothering to mask his panic. “What’s wrong? Can you speak?” He asked urgently.

Henry let out another wheezing breath. _Jesus_. “C-can’t… breathe… it h-hurts…,” he gasped. Alex gently pried Henry’s hands from the bed sheets to replace them with his.

“Shh, Hen. Look at me,” Alex said. “Follow me, okay? We’ll do this together.”

Henry looked up at him and Alex pained at how bloodshot and pained those blue eyes were. Despite his state of misery, Henry still forced himself to give Alex a little nod and squeezed his hand with all the strength Henry could muster at the moment.

What happened next was something that would Alex haunt forever. Before he could ever get Henry to follow his breathing, his boyfriend did something in between a wet cough and a dry heave, letting out his phlegm.

It had blood.

Alex took out his phone and dialed 911, then called Shaan right after to tell him that Henry needs to go to the hospital _right now_ and to just meet them there instead of him going to the brownstone to save time. After making Alex promise to tell him everything once they got there, Shaan hang up and was now on the way to the hospital.

“Henry. Hey. Baby look at me. I’m right here,” Alex said with a bit of urgency when he saw that the rise and fall of Henry’s chest were becoming less labored and more still. His skin was paler and tinged with sweat. The full lips that Alex loves so much were showing bits of blue. “The ambulance is already on the way and Shaan’s gonna meet us there. We’re taking you to the hospital, okay? You’re gonna be alright. You have to, Henry,” Alex’s voice cracked.

Henry couldn’t anymore speak at this point.

They managed to get Henry to the hospital within twelve antagonizing minutes and both Alex and Shaan, after answering the doctor, were promised to receive updates about his condition as soon as they have stabilized Henry. The waiting game was the worst. Alex was basically left alone in his own mind to relieve those moments over and over, doing nothing good to his overthinking brain. He paced the hallway a hundred times by now because the idea of keeping still makes Alex want to destroy something.

“Mr. Claremont-Diaz, maybe—” But Shan never got to finish what he was gonna say because one of the doctors approached them.

“Mr. Claremont-Diaz, Mr. Srivastava, you are both here for Prince Henry, am I correct?” They nodded. The doctor continued. “I’m Dr. Roberts. We’ve found out that His Highness is suffering from severe pneumonia, hence his difficulty in breathing.”

“But the blood. Is that part of the symptoms?” Alex asked.

Dr. Roberts nodded. “It is a less common symptom, but yes, it was also due to his pneumonia. Right now, we’re giving him oxygen treatment and keeping a close eye on him to see if there are no other complications. He should return to normal in a couple of days.”

“Can we see him?” Alex tucked away all the information the doctor presented them to sort out later. Right now, his main priority is seeing Henry.

“He is still unconscious, but you may see him in a moment. I’ll send someone to call for the both of you in a while.”

Shaan and Alex thanked him before they let out a sound of relief. Henry’s gonna be okay. He’d still feel shitty for the next days to come, but he’ll be alright. He’s the strongest person Alex knew, but he still couldn’t help the pain he felt in his chest from seeing Henry so pale and unconscious in a hospital bed, so many wires connecting him and beeping monitors that were the only reassurance that he’s still alive. That, and the oxygen mask strapped onto his face because he couldn’t breathe properly on his own.

Alex kept vigil at Henry’s bedside, lightly holding his hand. Shaan went out to inform the rest of his security team, as well as Alex’s. Around four in the morning, he must have drifted off because the next thing he knew the morning sunlight was hitting him in the face and there was someone rubbing his thumb. Alex’s eyes flew open immediately and sat up. “Henry,” he breathed.

Henry was indeed awake now. He still looks worn out and the sickly pallor is there, vividly present in his features, but this was an improvement albeit slightly. He gripped Alex’s hand tighter as a response since he’s still wearing his oxygen mask. Alex doesn’t mind one bit because he knows Henry well enough to see the brightness in his eyes—one of the many forms of their silent communication.

“I’m so glad you’re alive,” Alex said a little dumbly. He brought Henry’s hand to his lips and kissed his knuckles.

Henry placed Alex’s hand back on the bed facing upwards. He began writing on it: _I-M S-O-R_ —Alex caught on right away. “Don’t you dare finish that statement.”

_S-H-U-T U-P_

Alex laughed. “Glad to know you’re feeling well enough to start being rude to me again.” Henry rolled his eyes.

_Y-O-U W-O-N-T B-E A-B-L-E T-O F-I-N-I-S-H Y-O-U-R L-I-S-T_

Alex was confused for a moment before remembering what Henry was referring to. Before he left for D.C., he told Henry he made a list of all the Christmas activities they’d do once he got back. Since it’s their first one together, they have a free pass for being cliché from their group of friends. His eyes softened at this. “Don’t worry about it, sweetheart. We’ll still have time once you recover and don’t even suggest that I do them alone because you should know by now that the only reason I wanted to do them in the first place was because you’re gonna be with me. Got it? Okay, good. No more objections, Wales.”

_T-I-R-E-D S-L-E-E-P-Y W-I-L-L A-R-G-U-E W-I-T-H Y-O-U L-A-T-E-R_

“No, you won’t, but I completely agree with you on the getting some rest part,” Alex said. He stood up to kiss Henry on the forehead.

After making sure he was definitely asleep, Alex asked Shaan to stay with him for a while to which he agreed of course, but not without giving Alex a look that says _I know you’re up to something._ Well, to be fair, Alex _was_ up to something, but he’d decided to let Shaan in on it once he’s figured out everything first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there will be a part two for this one soon! as always, thank you for all your support :) i hope you're all having a great day!!


	6. just because it's christmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The nurse—her name on her uniform patch was Emma—must have been observing his reaction because she let out a soft chuckle at Henry’s very awed eyes. “Ah, seems like royals do get special treatments in hospitals,” she said jokingly. Before Henry could ask for a paper to write down his reply, a knock sounded at the door. Emma gave Henry one last knowing smile before she let the person in and exited the room.
> 
> Alex. Henry mentally cursed himself for not putting it all together.

After binge-watching almost all Christmas movies he and Henry could find in Netflix, Alex swore to himself that he’d never go to any department store during December. He may be a people person, but he hates crowds. There’s an exception though, which is Henry.

As he’s roaming around different craft stores around the mall, his boyfriend is currently admitted at the hospital due to severe pneumonia. He’s getting better, but he still needs a few more days at best. In their short time of talking to each other before Henry yet again drifted off due to his medication, Alex got the sense that he felt bad for ruining their plans together. That wasn’t true of course—he was literally fighting for his life not even 24 hours ago—but knowing Henry, he doesn’t believe that. To him, he sees himself as the reason why Alex wouldn’t get to do the things he listed, as if Alex cared about them now.

No matter. Alex would prove Henry wrong. He’d show his stubborn shithead of a boyfriend that he didn’t ruin Christmas for him. And so, a week before December 25, Alex was doing the thing he promised himself he wouldn’t do: go to the mall. _I’m doing this for Henry_ , he thinks to himself as someone grabbed the box of snowflakes ornaments he was holding. _I’m doing this for Henry_ , he thinks to himself as a kid was throwing a tantrum behind him in the line. _I’m doing this for Henry_ , he thinks to himself as he explains to a very rude salesperson what kinds of LED lights he was looking for. _I’m doing this for Henry_ , he thinks to himself as he received weird looks from the hospital staff when he was on the way to Henry’s room.

The universe turns out to be rooting for him because he was informed that Henry just took his medication before Alex got there, which means he’d be deeply asleep for at least three hours. _I can make that work_.

Alex very quietly went inside, kissed Henry on the forehead in greeting even though he’s unconscious for any of it, and began to work.

*

Henry isn’t an expert on medicine, but he sure knows that no medication involves a side effect of seeing your room transformed into some kind of winter wonderland. Is his oxygen treatment messing up his brain? He tried to get up, completely forgetting about his IV, so he made a sound of pain when it got caught somewhere. That was the only time he noticed that a nurse was in the room as well, checking his vitals and now helping him arrange his wires and inclining his bed a bit upright.

Her smile was warm and friendly. “Good to see you awake, Your Highness. Do you feel any pain? Any discomfort, sir?”

Henry shook his head, relieved that his head didn’t pound at the motion. Now that he was sitting, he was able to look at the room in full view.

It was goddamn beautiful.

Every corner was lit up with Christmas lights. The small table was set-up as a hot chocolate station complemented with marshmallows, whipped cream, and crush candy canes for optional toppings. Sofa chairs for the visitors were added with festive and fluffy throw pillows. And lastly, a huge ass Christmas tree was set-up on the opposite side of Henry’s bed, so he’d have a good view of it all the time.

The nurse—her name on her uniform patch was Emma—must have been observing his reaction because she let out a soft chuckle at Henry’s very awed eyes. “Ah, seems like royals do get special treatments in hospitals,” she said jokingly. Before Henry could ask for a paper to write down his reply, a knock sounded at the door. Emma gave Henry one last knowing smile before she let the person in and exited the room.

Alex. Henry mentally cursed himself for not putting it all together.

He was walking towards Henry with a smile that he loves so much. It was the smile Alex had just for him. Weirdly, though, he wasn’t saying anything at all, but instead holds up a board facing Henry. It said: _WITH ANY LUCK, BY NEXT YEAR_. He placed it at the back to reveal the second one: _WE’LL BE OUT THERE DOING ALL THESE THINGS_. Then he showed the next one, but this time it was a collage of pictures that were probably taken from Pinterest. They all featured couples doing different things like sledding, making snow angels, tree shopping, having a bonfire, building a pillow fort, catching snowflakes on their tongue.

Alex switches the board again. _BUT FOR NOW, BELIEVE ME WHEN I SAY._ Switch. _WITHOUT HOPE OR AGENDA_. Switch. _JUST BECAUSE IT’S CHRISTMAS._ Switch. _AND AT CHRISTMAS YOU TELL THE TRUTH._ A hurried switch by a sheepish looking Alex. _NOT THAT I LIE TO YOU THE REST OF THE YEAR._ This earns a laugh-turned-cough from Henry and his oxygen mask.

 _TO ME, YOU ARE ENOUGH._ Before showing him the next, Alex looked at Henry and repeated the words to him with his eyes. _FOR ME TO HAVE._ Switch. _THE BEST CHRISTMAS OF MY LIFE._ Switch. _AND I LOVE YOU._ Switch. _SHITTY LUNGS AND ALL._ That was the last one.

Alex gently wiped the tears that escaped from his eyes and cupped both of Henry’s cheeks. “I’d rather spend my entire Christmas vacation with you in a hospital than do all these festive stuff with anyone else.”

 _I L-O-V-E Y-O-U A-L-E-X_ , Henry traced on his palm.

“I love you more. Merry Christmas, baby.”

*

Henry fell asleep first, only reaching the third movie of their Harry Potter marathon and after tucking him and fixing his pillows, Alex moved to the sofa since it was much comfortable using his laptop there. He replied to several messages from June, Nora, Bea, and Pez, reassuring them that Henry was okay now. The doctors already gave the go-signal for him to go home the day after tomorrow. Before he attempts to sleep, he has one last thing to do. He pulled up his crumpled list from this jean pocket and updated it.

_(Stupid) Things to do with Henry during Christmas Break_

  1. _Kiss under the mistletoe_
  2. _~~Set up the biggest Christmas tree they could find~~_
  3. _~~Decorate every inch of their place with holiday decors~~_
  4. _Have sex with one of them wearing a Santa costume_
  5. _~~Recreate a cheesy Christmas movie scene~~_
  6. _Make David wear an ugly sweater with them for a family picture_
  7. _See who can stand longer outside while wearing only a shirt and boxers_
  8. _Build the biggest gingerbread house ever_




	7. make my wish come true

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All of this started at the opening of Henry and Pez’s youth shelter in New York, by a very drunk June, that they should have a yearly Christmas get together.
> 
> “Attendance is a must and there shall be no excuses for not being able be… to be at...”
> 
> “The brownstone?” Henry offered, while Alex shot him a dark look for offering up their home to the comfort of four imbeciles. Both of them were currently supporting June and leading her towards the sofa where Pez, Bea, and Nora were chatting.
> 
> “Yeah! That’s perfect! Okay, let’s go tell the others.”
> 
> And that’s how, two weeks into the month of December, the six of them found themselves in the living room of the brownstone by the fireplace, mugs of hot cocoas in hand, and wearing the most ridiculous Christmas jumper they could find.

Ever since moving into their brownstone in New York, Alex and Henry’s place has become the meeting point of their group of friends. Together, they’re what the media named as The Super Six. It was quite a rare occasion for them to get together given that each of them has a lot on their plate—Alex with law school, Henry with his and Pez’s youth shelters and royal duties to the crown, Nora with her master’s, June with her work as a journalist, Pez with the Okonjo Foundation, and Bea with her charity funds for addiction recovery. Suffice to say they only get to have updates on each other through social media, a couple of video calls here and there, and sometimes in public events (although more often than not, there’d be one missing, and so they were still incomplete).

All of this started at the opening of Henry and Pez’s youth shelter in New York, by a very drunk June, that they should have a yearly Christmas get together.

“Attendance is a must and there shall be no excuses for not being able be… to be at...”

“The brownstone?” Henry offered, while Alex shot him a dark look for offering up their home to the comfort of four imbeciles. Both of them were currently supporting June and leading her towards the sofa where Pez, Bea, and Nora were chatting.

“Yeah! That’s perfect! Okay, let’s go tell the others.”

And that’s how, two weeks into the month of December, the six of them found themselves in the living room of the brownstone by the fireplace, mugs of hot cocoas in hand, and wearing the most ridiculous Christmas jumper they could find. They were all situated on the soft leather couches—Alex and Henry on the loveseat chair, Bea called dibs on the one-sitter, while June, Nora, and Pez were being their chaotic selves in the main one.

Pez and Nora arranged the mechanics for their Super Six Secret Santa to make sure that the knowledge of who gets who only stays with that person. _(“The papers are just gonna shorten this to SSSS and then it’ll lose its appeal!” “Shut up, Alex!”_ ). The mechanics were just like any other exchange gift activities, but they tweaked it a bit so that the gift they’re going to give the one they got was something they shouldn’t acquire with money. Leave it to Alex to always either make things more interesting or give them all a hard time.

Noticing that his friends were now starting to doze off, Pez loudly clapped his hands to purposely startle them awake. “Okay, _grinches_ , no sleeping yet! Auntie Pezza would now start our first ever Secret Santa.”

Henry threw a pillow at him. “Would you please stop referring to yourself in third person?”

“No can do, Your Highness,” Pez said and threw it back at him, only for the pillow to hit Alex square in the face instead, causing Nora to burst in a fit of laughter. Pez cleared his throat. “As I was saying, I’ll determine the person to first give their gift by my trusty random name generator app here.” He waved his phone and began typing their names in. After a few seconds, he announced, “Aaaaand… Alex! You’re up first.”

Alex walks over to the center of the room, asks everyone to drumroll, and lets out a very loud, “Junebug! I got you a… possible collaboration with Ronan Far—”

“OH MY GOD, ALEX, YOU DIDN’T!” Then June, without letting his brother reply, ran up to Alex and tackled him into a hug. Everyone lets out a whoop at this once in a lifetime sibling moment.

It was June’s turn now and she announced to the group that she got Henry. With a sly grin, she turned to him and said, “Oh, you’re gonna love this,” and then proceeded to give Alex a look that made her brother a bit nervous.

“June,” Alex hissed. “Why do you have that look on your face?”

June smiled innocently at him. “Relax, brother, this has absolutely nothing to do with you.” As soon as he said that, she retrieved the J14 issue that proves how Alex is not very subtle than he thinks when it comes to romantic interests.

Henry’s eyes widened. “Is that—”

“You bet it is, Your Highness,” June grinned at him. Henry let out a laugh so bright that Alex wished they were filming all of this just so he could relieve that moment over again.

Henry stood up from the sofa and went up to June to place a kiss on her cheek. “I’ll have this displayed at the V&A,” he said, but he was directly looking at Alex who was now scowling playfully.

After the wolf whistles from Pez, Bea, and Nora have subsided, Henry told them he got Pez and that his Christmas gift for him was the Gucci jacket from next year’s line. Henry got it from one of his magazine shoots a while back because he remembered Pez gushing about it months ago. Pez, of course, made a show of kneeling in front of Henry with his head bowed on the floor before Henry lightly kicked him on the shoulder. His best friend hastily hugged him before getting Nora’s present hat he hid upstairs.

Nora outright screamed at the sight of a portable 3D printer. A while back, one of Pez’s family’s organizations had received a sponsorship from a Scandinavian university and this was one of the many technologies that they sent. Fortunately, the Okonjo foundations received multiple of these 3D printers, which allowed Pez to snatch one for personal use.

After a few tearful “God bless your beautiful soul” from Nora to Pez, she looked at Bea. “Aha! You’re my Secret Santa, Princess Beatrice.” She let out an evil chuckle and retrieved a large hidden bag behind the sofa. It let out a soft _meow_ , while Henry grumbled an “Oh no.”

Bea, having been caught up with what her gift from Nora is, turned to her brother and said, “Oh _yes_.”

“She’s one of the rescues at the pet shelter I often visit near MIT,” Nora told her and then placed a chubby gray cat on Bea’s lap, but not before holding the poor cat up like Simba from the Lion King. Everyone immediately crowded the cat to pet her, but Bea shooed them back, afraid that their ugly face might scare Nora Junior.

This then leaves Bea as Alex’s Secret Santa. “Alexander,” she wiggled her eyebrows. “I give you the Bible.” She dumped a heavy package on Alex’s lap, which is shaped like a book. Upon opening, Alex discovered it was a royal photo album. But not just any album, it was _Henry’s_.

“You all better keep this secret from Pip and the Queen, else they’d chop my head—” Before Bea could finish Alex ran over to hug her, taking care not to squish Nora Jr. in between them. While Pez, Nora, and June scrambled to take a look at baby Henry running around Kensington in nothing but diapers, Bea leaned over to whisper in Alex’s ear, “There’s another thing. I placed it in the cabinet with all your supply of coffee beans. Watch it when you’re alone.” Alex immediately knew that it still is somehow connected to Henry since Bea hid it in the place the latter only rarely looks at.

Later that night while Henry took David for a walk and Alex found himself alone in their brownstone, he searched for the other item from Bea and to his surprise, found that it was an old-looking CD. It didn’t have any labels nor any markings on the case. He went to their living room and played it. Alex didn’t know what to expect, but he was grateful that Bea told him to watch it by himself because he really didn’t want anyone to know what he looks like when he’s a sobbing mess.

Alex felt as if he was transported eighteen years ago, when Henry was five and Arthur Fox was still alive. In the video, baby Henry was sitting on a small piano, pressing randomly, while his dad was filming him.

_“Say hello to the camera, Henry.”_

_“Hello, camera!”_

_“What are you playing there, buddy?”_

_“A song I heard yesterday. I really liked it.”_

_“Will you play it for me?”_

_“Nah, I don’t want to.”_

_“Why not?”_

_“Because I’m saving it for a special audience.”_

_“Who’s that, bud?”_

_“Hmm… the person I’m gonna marry.”_

_“Nooo, you’re still my baby!”_

_“I know, I didn’t mean now!”_

_“Well can you tell me the title at least?”_

_“It’s called Your Song by Elton John.”_


	8. baby it’s cold outside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex have never found himself more content with his life than he was now, cuddled up with the person he loves the most while a fire roars a few feet away to keep them warm as the snow dominated the outside world. He didn’t care about that though; all that matters to him is the cozy bubble that was their winter cabin for ten days.

In his line of work, it often feels like a requirement to have your mind running at every second of every day, whether busied for a presentation for his major subject in law school or a work opportunity from his mom, who was also the current president of the United States. However, there can still be moments where everything is so quiet and peaceful that Alex can’t help but let all his thoughts—both the good and the bad—come pouring in. These times were rare, and today was even rarer for the fact that he wasn’t nursing a single negative thought. Only Henry is capable of doing that to him.

Alex have never found himself more content with his life than he was now, cuddled up with the person he loves the most while a fire roars a few feet away to keep them warm as the snow dominated the outside world. He didn’t care about that though; all that matters to him is the cozy bubble that was their winter cabin for ten days. This trip was his gift to Henry as much as it was for himself because first of all, it was goddamn beautiful out here and second, he was rewarded with a passionate-kiss-turned-sex from his boyfriend when he told him about it. Usually, Henry could sense when Alex was thinking too hard and would put him out of his reverie, but not this time because he was currently deeply asleep beside Alex and the latter was enjoying every second of it. Most times, it was Alex who falls asleep first despite fighting his drowsiness off and Henry’s the one who deals with his insomnia, so currently Alex keeps reminding himself not to miss this moment.

A part of Alex wants to capture Henry like this—tousled soft blonde hair across the pillow, long lashes fluttering as he dreams, lips slightly parted, a sign he’s deeply asleep—just so he could prove those media outlets that keep on insisting that they’ve broken up or that their relationship is fake. But Alex didn’t. He knows he’s the only one in the world who gets to see him like this, and Alex prefers for it to stay that way. He did end up posting something though, simply because he strives to keep his social media accounts active and well, he was getting bored, but he doesn’t want to move from his current position. They’ve had so many Instagram-worthy photos—thank you, Nora, for explaining this concept to him all those years ago—from the past few days that he spent more time smiling like an idiot while browsing through them than uploading the post itself. There were pictures of Henry rosy cheeked and laughing as he posed from inside a makeshift igloo, of the two of them with whipped cream mustaches from their hot chocolate, of Alex midway into knocking on the glass window of their winter cabin because Henry locked him outside as a joke, and a lot more featuring the two of them in candid shots courtesy of the old woman who offered to take some for them.

In the end, Alex ended up with the two of them lying on the snow side by side, in the middle of making snow angels. They were laughing so hard their eyes crinkled at the corners and looking at each other with so much love that June once described to him as _the kind that makes people look away_. “But not because it disgusts them,” she explained. “It’s rather the fact that they feel like they don’t deserve to witness something so pure.” Alex never forgot those words.

A couple of minutes later, Alex felt Henry stir. He put his phone away and turned to look at him, just in time to catch the moment Henry opens his eyes. God, they were the most beautiful shade of blue. “Have I ever told you how much I love the way you look when you first wake up?”

Henry smiled sleepily. “About once or twice,” he rasps. Alex felt his insides melt. He’d never get tired of this kind of Henry. Ever.

“And have I also told you how much I love your voice after a long nap?” He said shamelessly.

“And _you_ ,” Henry countered, “are a sap.”

Alex grinned. “Yes, I am and I’m proud of it.”

Henry laughed softly. “You didn’t sleep?”

“Couldn’t,” Alex shrugged.

His reply garnered a small frown from Henry. “You might be too tired for the surprise later.”

Alex rolled his eyes. “ _Please_ , as if you don’t know me, baby. I can be awake for just about anything,” he said with a wink. And then, “Any clue what it is about?”

“You’ll see soon enough, love.”

*

“Are we there yet?”

“Yes, we have. For about ten minutes now, Alex.”

“But where is it?”

“It’s almost there.”

“Okay, either one of us is delirious from the cold right now because I didn’t understand what you just said.”

“Just wait for a few more minutes, I promise it’s going to be worth it.”

“Fine, but just so you know, if my ass freezes permanently, I’ll—” Alex gasped. Was he really seeing this? Holy shit.

Henry was watching him to see his reaction, and now the bastard was smiling smugly at Alex. “I told you.”

“Shush, baby,” Alex said as he held Henry’s gloved hand. “We’re having a moment, I’m not gonna have you ruin it by implying something stupid like _me_ being _wrong_.”

Henry didn’t respond. He just moved closer to Alex to kiss him on both cheeks, then on the nose, and finally on the forehead. Alex wasn’t sure right now which was tighter: his grip on Henry’s hand or his throat. He very much didn’t want to speak for the fear that he might cry—he wanted Henry to shed a tear first before he does—but he needs to voice this one out. “I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you more,” Henry whispered back.

“Not possible, but I’ll get back to you on that later,” Alex said. “Thank you for this. Seriously.”

Henry’s eyes were glistening now. “Technically, it’s all nature’s doing—” Alex didn’t let him finish that smartass statement.

For as long as the world let them, Alex and Henry stood there in the complete darkness, save for the breathtaking hues of the aurora borealis, completely wrapped in each other’s arms. They’d complain about their numb limbs as they go back to their cabin, rush towards the fire, and quickly change into warmer clothes, but right now, they were enjoying this moment together. Right now, they weren’t the First Son of the United States and the Prince of England, the world’s most influential couple. They were just Alex and Henry, two people who found a home in each other.


	9. you should be here with me safe and warm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 9:47 p.m.  
> where r u?? r u safe? pls come home
> 
> 9:48 p.m.  
> or like pick up your phone pls
> 
> 9:50 p.m.  
> henry please i just need to know if u’re safe bby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for all the medical inaccuracies, i tried my best 😅

Henry should’ve listened to the news report—that’s what everyone shouts at the main character when watching a movie centered around an apocalypse or some sort—but he didn’t. To be fair, he did have some good reasons as to why he chose to drive to Pennsylvania from New York, alone, in the middle of winter. First is because he and Pez are eyeing a specific city there to establish another youth shelter and he wants to personally take a look at their prospective location. Second is because he found out that the last stock of the item he wishes to give Alex for Christmas is located there. And third—which is a pretty funny reason if you ask Alex—is because he wants to practice driving in “American fashion.”

That morning, the snow was falling a lot heavier as compared to the previous days. It was forecasted that the East Coast would be experiencing a blizzard in the upcoming days, which was also why Henry scheduled everything today because he doubts it would be safe to go out during the weekend. And so, he and Alex were off to their different destinations for the day, with him driving to Pennsylvania and Alex driving to NYU.

It was another stressful day for Alex given that it was the middle of his finals week before their break. Going to school without the presence of Cash or any other security personnel was quite weird, but he and Henry coordinated with their families so that they could give their security teams a week off. The following weeks would be even more hectic because the holidays mean more public events and appearances to attend.

He was in contact with Henry the entire day though, which made everything better. Alex would’ve offered to go with him because despite Henry’s insistence that he was fine going on his own, Alex still didn’t miss the way his nervous ticks presented themselves, but he had a very important lecture in one of his majors that he couldn’t miss.

_7:13 a.m._

_text me when you get there. drive safe!!_

_10:42 a.m._

_I’ve just arrived. Will tell you everything when I get home. Have a great day, love._

_10:54 a.m._

_you too!! hot cocoa and movie night later??_

_10:56 a.m._

_Can’t wait. Love you._

As soon as Alex stepped into the brownstone, David was instantly at his feet. His tail is wagging excitedly, and he couldn’t seem to decide whether he wanted Alex to carry him or to rub his belly. He asked Henry once why wasn’t he that happy when Alex comes home, but he just got a fond exasperated sigh.

Once he made himself comfortable by changing to sweatpants and Henry’s Oxford hoodie, Alex decided to pass the time by getting ahead on his readings, refilling David’s food and water bowls, and ordering dinner. He checked his phone again to see if there was any text from Henry he might have missed.

Nothing.

_7:18 p.m._

_babyyy are u gonna be home soon?_

All Alex knows is that Henry should already be heading back to New York because driving in the snow at night is pretty dangerous. They both agreed on that. However, given the weather that they currently have, Alex is starting to seriously worry. Really, of all the days Shaan weren’t with Henry.

He ate dinner with David and waited for Henry. Well, Alex tried, but he couldn’t seem to sit still, couldn’t help but pace around and mess things up just to put back to their original places again. He probably left around twenty missed calls by now, but not once did Henry answer the phone.

_9:47 p.m._

_where r u?? r u safe? pls come home_

_9:48 p.m._

_or like pick up your phone pls_

_9:50 p.m._

_henry please i just need to know if u’re safe bby_

Alex tried calling again.

Please.

Please.

Please.

“H-hello?” It was Henry. Alex felt like crying from relief.

“Henry? Where are you? Are you safe?”

“—lex, I can’t—signal—”

“Henry? Can you hear me?” Alex asked urgently.

“—hear—car—storm—”

“What? Baby, I can’t—”

Before Alex could say anything more, the line went dead. He wasn’t even able to know whether Henry was alright. Or where he was. Or why he was taking so long. Or what happened to his car. But because Alex is Alex, he didn’t need Henry to directly tell him what’s wrong. Alex knows Henry’s not okay, and that knowledge itself is enough for him to ran upstairs, pack his phone charger and power bank, water, flashlight, and winter gear. It was as if the gears in Alex’s mind went into high-power mode the moment he registered Henry’s panicked and cracking voice.

Within five minutes since their call ended, Alex found himself in the driver’s seat of his car, en route to Pennsylvania, or wherever the hell Henry is right now because he doesn’t really care where he ended up, just as long as he gets to take Henry home safe and sound. The problem was Alex couldn’t track Henry’s phone, which makes things a hell lot more complicated.

In the end, Alex decided to take the highways Henry did on the way there, hoping and praying to God that’s the same route his boyfriend decided to take on his way back because then, Alex would have a chance of finding him.

And he did.

Almost four agonizing hours later, having ran through every possible scenario in his head—both the best and the worst cases, attempted calling Henry a thousand times, and slowing down at every car he saw that was parked on the curb of a now-quiet highway, he spotted Henry’s car. Immediately, Alex parked his, got out, and went to get Henry.

In his twenty-one years of existence, Alex could say he’s already had a fair share of witnessing horrible scenarios, whether it may be a violent protest outside the White House or an accidental peep at Nora’s butt crack, but not like this. He knew right then and there that the image of Henry, who’s shivering so badly one would think he’s already halfway frozen to death, would be the stuff of his nightmares forever.

“Henry.” Alex cupped his cheek and gently shook him awake, trying to get a feel of his pulse.

Henry slowly opened his eyes, not without difficulty, and croaked out, “A-alex? That y-you?”

Alex let out a sob. “Yes, it’s me. Come on, Hen, we gotta get you out of here.”

Christ, Henry was cold as ice. Alex helped him get out of his broken-down car and into his heated one. He saw Henry’s eyes were starting to close again, so Alex tried to strike up a conversation with him, anything to keep him conscious while he was removing Henry’s coat and gloves that were all soaking wet and putting on him the dry ones he brought with him before he left home.

“S’cold, Alex,” Henry murmured. “Don’t know… what h-happened t-to the car.”

“Don’t worry about that now, okay? Just focus on your breathing. Here, hold out your hand,” Alex said. He rubbed them with his to create friction and consequently, heat.

Alex didn’t trust himself to get back on the road just yet. Not with Henry still having difficulty breathing properly. Not with Henry coughing and shivering non-stop. He was starting to think whether these were the signs of hypothermia when Henry groaned. Instantly, Alex was asking him if he needed anything, what hurts, do they need to go to a hospital, when Henry cut him off.

“M’fine, really,” he said softly and then coughed.

“Don’t bullshit me right now, Wales.” Alex was starting to panic again.

“Just… hold me? I don’t think I can handle a car ride yet,” Henry whispered.

“Of course, baby.”

Alex went over to the passenger seat where Henry was and maneuvered them both so he could hold Henry properly. They stayed like that for a while, in their little heated bubble inside the car as the snowstorm continued on, Henry’s head buried into Alex’s chest while Alex continuously rubs his back and pecks him on the forehead. They got back eventually and were greeted with hundreds of voicemails from everyone.

Oh, and a very tired and stressed looking beagle.


	10. the great gingerbread competition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Okay, let’s see if I was able to follow both of your idiotic train of thoughts,” Nora said. “So basically, what happened was that you two turned our Not-Really-Thanksgiving food into a competition and now we don’t have anything to eat because you’re both wearing it?”
> 
> Alex and Henry had the nerve to look flushed. “We kinda got into a food fight when we couldn’t agree who made the better pie,” Henry said.
> 
> Bea sighed. “Well, in that case, since you two love the idea of winning, here’s what I propose for our Christmas party.”

It all started back in Thanksgiving. The Super Six, much to everyone’s surprise, were able to get together at the brownstone that weekend. It just so happened that each one of them didn’t have anything urgent to take care of, and so Nora and Alex declared they celebrate together despite half of the members of their group being British. As a compromise—and to save another turkey from being cooked—they all agreed that it was going to be more of an I-miss-you-video-calls-and-chats-are-not-enough thing rather than the traditional Thanksgiving. But of course, there would still be food. Pez assigned Alex and Henry to take care of that and leave the entertainment to him. What he didn’t realize, though, is putting Alex and Henry in the same category, even as mundane as food preparation, brings out their competitiveness (more than usual). So, this was how Bea, Nora, Pez, and June found the two idiots that Saturday morning: donning turkey-printed aprons, covered with pumpkin pie filling, and looking like they aged twenty years courtesy of the amount of white flour they have in their hair.

The four stopped dead in their tracks, torn between wanting to die of laughter and making sure no one was actually hurt. Upon seeing them, Alex and Henry halted what look like a vicious round of throwing pumpkin slices at each other. Bea broke the silence. “Should we even ask?”

Alex clapped his hands together, resulting to flour scattering around his hands. “Nope,” he said and then walked towards them for a hug, but the four intruders collectively took a stepped back, rightfully so. Alex masked a fake hurt expression. “I thought y’all missed me.”

“We miss Normal Alex and Normal Henry,” June said. “We don’t know Pumpkin Pie Alex and Pumpkin Pie Henry.”

Pez interrupted. “Wanna tell us what’s going on, babes? Is this a new kink thing?”

A groan from Bea.

“It’s Alex’s fault,” Henry said, as if they were two-year-old toddlers and not in their twenties.

Alex immediately countered this. “No way! His Royal Highness here told me to pretend we were in a Great British Bake-Off episode—”

“And by that I meant like we’d present our final dishes like contestants—”

“Yeah, so that implies we’d _act_ like them as well, and that means we’re competing against each other.”

“Okay, let’s see if I was able to follow both of your idiotic train of thoughts,” Nora said. “So basically, what happened was that you two turned our Not-Really-Thanksgiving food into a competition and now we don’t have anything to eat because you’re both wearing it?”

Alex and Henry had the nerve to look flushed. “We kinda got into a food fight when we couldn’t agree who made the better pie,” Henry said.

Bea sighed. “Well, in that case, since you two love the idea of _winning_ , here’s what I propose for our Christmas party.”

*

“Thirty minutes left!” Pez said in his best announcer voice.

The Super Six found themselves yet again in the brownstone, but this time New York was white and sparkly unlike the last time they visited wherein the city seemed like it vomited a rustic color palette from Pinterest. June, Nora, Pez, and Bea got in last night and had nothing to do today aside from relaxing and being entertained by what they all agreed to call The Great Gingerbread Competition. The name might change later to Fiasco, but they’d find that out soon enough. In the kitchen a few feet away from them were a very unrelaxed Henry and a very stressed out Alex. Both were currently occupied—funnily enough—not with each other, but with sticky dough and icing decorations and peppermint swirl candies. When they got fed up with their streak of competitiveness, they decided to give Alex and Henry the most competitive of all the competitions there ever is to sate the bastards. Plus, it was festive, and they’d get to enjoy the end results (assuming they’re going to be edible).

“Quit it, Alex! You already used up all your frosting,” Henry said, followed by a sound that seemed like he slapped Alex’s hands away.

“You don’t need that much; Kensington Palace is not white! You know what’s white? The fucking _White_ House,” Alex retorted back.

Nora let out a maniacal laughter from the sofa. Rubbing her hands together, she said, “Oh this is going to be epic.”

“You’re evil,” Bea said with a laugh.

June snorted as she positioned herself to be lying on Pez’s lap. “Need I remind you that you were the one who came up with the rules, Princess?”

“You’re a genius, B,” Pez said.

“How detailed did you say it had to be again?” Nora asked, although Bea never got to answer her because a loud sound came from the kitchen. They all groaned at his.

“Did you two give up and started making out now?” June addressed Alex and Henry.

“We’re done!” Both of them shouted at the same time.

Bea, June, Nora, and Pez stood up and with a little reluctance and fear of what they might find, they entered the kitchen. To say there were impressed was an understatement, and Alex and Henry knew as well that they actually did a pretty good job of making a gingerbread version of the Kensington Palace and the White House from the smug looks on their faces.

“Before you two insist on claiming yourselves as the winner, care to explain first why the hell do you have frosting on your mouths?” Bea asked.

“We might have had, er, a celebratory kiss?” Henry said sheepishly.

“Alright, you can stop there. We don’t want to know anymore.”

“Actually,” Pez started. “I kind of want to.”

Nora looked gleeful at this. “Ooh, me too!”

“NO,” chorused June and Bea, who have had the misfortune of having too much information about their brothers’ sex lives already.

“Sooo,” Alex drawled out. “Who’s the winner?”

Bea was taking minutes to reply, so Alex reminder her, “You promised no biases, Beatrice. Pretend Henry is just some random guy who’s homeless so he’s here with us right now and not your favorite sibling.”

“I hate you,” Henry deadpanned.

“My God. I did _not_ think this through,” Bea said miserably.

“What do you mean, B?” asked Pez.

“Well, I kind of expected them to fail, so I honestly didn’t prepare to actually pick out a winner in the end,” she confessed to everyone. The contestants gaped at her. “We could just, erm, let… David to be the judge?”

*

“I can’t… believe he did… that,” Nora wheezed.

“You caught that on camera, right? Please tell me you did,” Bea asked Pez.

He grinned. “Sure, did. The media is going to _love_ this,”

“How are you two holding up?” June said, holding back her laughter.

Alex moaned miserably and buried his face even further into Henry’s neck. “Leave us alone.”

“I’m sorry David—”

“Peed on mine and pooped on Alex’s masterpieces?” Henry said flatly.

A laugh escaped from Nora once again, and this time Bea joined her. “Well,” Pez clapped his hands. “It was a fiasco after all.”

Henry narrowed his eyes at his so-called best friend. “Just wait for next year. You’re all dead to us.”

Alex perked up from his position, eyes glittering. “I have something in mind,” he whispered conspiratorially to Henry.

“I’m listening.”


	11. i don’t want a lot for christmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now, it was Christmas Eve and he gets an update saying something went wrong. In short, it won’t arrive in time. "Great," Alex thought. Pulling up his laptop and situating himself in his office desk, he got to work. "He can find Henry another great gift." Or so he thinks.

Alex thought that once his finals for the semester were over, he’d be finally free from stress even just for the holidays. He was beyond pretending at this point that all he wants to do is spend some time with Henry doing all the cliché winter activities he could think of. Sure, they’d done some exploring when they first moved in a couple of months ago, but everyone knows New York during winter is an entirely different story.

He wants to completely mess up their kitchen by making gingerbread houses and chocolate chip cookies, test out different hot chocolate recipes and rate them one by one, skate at the Rockefeller Center and bet Henry which of them would fall first, play with David in the snow, buy Henry and himself the most ridiculous Christmas sweaters he could find at the department store, spend the whole day at The Strand watching Henry be completely mesmerized by all the books surrounding them. Though deep down, Alex knows that these are not really necessary for him to enjoy the season. Just the fact that he and Henry are somehow free now to live their lives together is more than enough for him, but he still couldn’t shake the fact that all of it still feels like a dream and so the need for some domesticity.

In the end, they did manage to do these things before Henry was whisked away to London for some end-of-the-year royal duties. Of course, Alex prefers to have his boyfriend by his side, but he wasn’t in the mood to go head-to-head with the Queen of England because he still needs to resolve his fucking misfortune like, right now.

Today is Christmas Eve in New York, which is also the day Henry is bound to return home after a week with his family. Alex is excited for it, truly. He even let Cash and Amy agree to let him surprise Henry at the airport later in the day. However, he would definitely feel a lot happier about being reunited with his boyfriend if he wasn’t currently so preoccupied with solving the fiasco that was Henry’s Christmas gift. It was this beautiful mahogany keyboard that they saw outside a music store while on the way home. Henry pulled him inside and tried playing it—and by try, he meant that his boyfriend casually played parts of Chopin’s Sonata No. 2. Alex couldn’t have dragged him out the store all the way to their brownstone and finally to their bed fast enough. He told Henry afterwards, when they were both sated, that his competency kink (at this point in their relationship Alex has no shame anymore) is very much triggered by whatever he does. The fucker just laughed at him and even Alex found that hot. Henry did like to exploit this, which he proved to Alex by continuing to play the piece while his fingers were on Alex’s back.

Alex woke up the next morning as a man with a very important mission: to get Henry that fucking piano for Christmas. It was a gift for him as much as it is for Alex, if he were honest. But his luck wasn’t so great since he went back alone to find that it has been sold already. Fat chance it was also due to the fact that Henry’s video the night before went viral. The salesperson Alex talked to offered if he was willing to wait for a couple of weeks since they could order another stock.

And now, it was Christmas Eve and he gets an update saying something went wrong. In short, it won’t arrive in time. _Great_ , Alex thought. Pulling up his laptop and situating himself in his office desk, he got to work. _I can find Henry another great gift_.

3:43 p.m.

_Alex, what time are we heading to the airport? Shaan said they’re due to arrive at 5:30._

3:48 p.m.

_I’m guessing you’re busy. Just message me or Cash once you see this._

4:56 p.m.

_Guess you’ll just surprise Henry at home, then?_

4:57 p.m.

_ALEXANDER_

By the time Alex saw these messages it was already too late for him to pick-up Henry at the airport because it was already six thirty. Shit. He was just about to return back Amy’s and Cash’s missed calls when a voice called from the doorway. “Hello.”

Alex may or may not have let out a very unattractive yelp.

“Good to know you clearly missed me,” Henry says as he removes his jacket.

“Oh, shut up,” Alex grinned as he walked towards his boyfriend and kissed him. “Welcome home, baby.” Then they hugged each other hard. They stayed that way, swaying together and attempting to waltz, in the middle of a room filled with stacks of law books and documents for youth shelters. It shouldn’t be as heartwarming as Henry running up to him at the airport—which was how Alex imagined would have happened—but because they’re Henry and Alex, they managed to make it so.

“Care to tell me what you were so worked up about a while ago?” Henry asks him, his voiced muffled from nuzzling his face into Alex’s neck.

Alex simply made a _hmm_ sound in return, but when he felt Henry pinched him at his side, he conceded. “I was trying to find you a gift,” he muttered.

Henry chuckled at him. “I thought we’d agreed on no presents?”

“Yeah right, as if you followed that too,” Alex scoffed. He rolled his eyes despite Henry not being able to see his face.

“Okay, yes I didn’t. It was a stupid rule, anyway,” Henry said. “So, what about it? You’re not required to get me anything, you know.”

“No, it’s not that,” Alex whined. “I’ve had this gift for weeks now, but something came up and now it’s not going to be here by tomorrow. Hell, I don’t even know if it’s going to arrive.”

Henry rubbed his back soothingly. “Don’t worry about it, alright? Believe it or not, I’m not really a materialistic person. I just like being happy and having lots of sex.”

Alex laughed loudly and pulled away from their embrace to look at Henry in the eyes. “God, I love you.”

Henry’s eyes soften at that. Alex finds it ridiculous that after everything, there are still times when Henry gets caught off guard by these kinds of statements coming from him. It doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with Henry for seeming not to believe him at times, though. Years of restrictive royal upbringing and lack of familial support would do that to anyone. Alex just makes it his daily goal to love Henry even harder.

And then, Henry’s blue eyes sparkled quite mischievously. “Also, you should know. You’re—”

“No, please don’t say it.”

“You’re my present.”

“Goddamnit,” Alex mutters and tackled Henry to give him another kiss. This time, they brought it to the bedroom.


	12. they call it the season of giving (i’m here, yours for the taking)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When they got home looking so miserable with their red noses and frosty eyelashes, all they had in mind was to stay by the fireplace and never move away from it again. So that’s what they did. (“Hey babe.” “Yeah?” “How long have we been cuddling so far?” “All day, but I still don’t want to move.” “Yup, me too.”)

“Wake up.”

“Hmm?”

“It’s Christmas! Time to open presents!” A voice said that was, as if on cue, followed by a bark.

Alex rolled over to his side and fumbled with the blanket to put over his face, hiding from two nuisances. No luck. A hand was instantly pulling it back and keeping it out of his reach. “Honestly, I thought you’d be more excited for this,” Henry scoffed.

“I am,” Alex grumbled defensively. “But you tired me out last night, so.”

“If I recall correctly, you were even more excited about that,” Henry said smugly.

“Shut up,” Alex chuckled. “Can’t function yet. Why don’t you just come back to bed?” He held his arms out to his boyfriend who, for reasons Alex couldn’t fathom, is already up and about even though today is literally the one time of the year they are guaranteed to be free from any kind of work or responsibility.

Henry sighed fondly. “Alright, fine.” He crawled under their comforter and carefully positioned himself with his chest facing Alex’s back, slotting himself perfectly into place. They were both facing their bedroom window that provides them with an amazing view of Brooklyn in winter. Henry watches as a group of friends across the street were building a tall snowman, as a dog left paw prints in the snow as it runs away from its owner, as—

“I’m literally beside you and yet you’re looking so far away,” Alex huffs.

Henry laughed. “When did you become a jealous grump?”

Alex turned to look at him and shrugged. “I’m not, I just want to pick up a fight.”

“I hate you,” Henry says with a tone of affection that’s usually reserved for people you oppositely hate.

“Yeah, I think you made that clear when you told Shaan to get rid of me.”

Henry groaned. “Oh my god, please don’t remind me any—”

Alex interrupted him gleefully. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding! I know you like, love me a lot or whatever. Just about enough to move across the world and end up marrying me,” he said jokingly as he cuddled closer to Henry, placing his head on his boyfriend’s chest.

 _Oh god. Leave it to Alex to make him even more nervous without him realizing it_ , Henry thought. He let out a laugh, although it turned out to be more of a nervous chuckle. To redeem himself, he retorted back, “And I know you tolerate me enough to live with me. I guess you’re a pretty okay five-nine.”

“ _Ugh_! How many _times_ do I have to tell you that five-nine is average, you fucker.” As Alex was saying this, Henry was mouthing it with him—just shows how many times Henry says this so he could see Alex’s defensive expression again and again. God, he loves this idiot so much.

“Are you done now?” Henry changes the topic. He felt Alex shook his head, but ignored it and sit up, taking the other one with him. “I really want to give you my present now,” he said, donning Alex’s favorite smile of his.

Alex narrowed his eyes at him. “I know what you’re doing, but fine, as long as you make me hot chocolate.”

“Deal.”

*

The gift-giving part of their day got postponed for a number of reasons. After they had their breakfast, David won’t stop whining because he wanted to go outside for their usual morning walks, not realizing that it’s quite impossible to do that as the snow was thick outside. But he didn’t stop, even went so far as peeing on the kitchen floor—

_“You’re such a pain in the ass,” Henry groaned as he mopped the floor clean._

_Alex snorted from behind him. “Well, he’s your child.”_

—so, they had no choice but to brave the cold ass walk to the park nearby. When they got home looking so miserable with their red noses and frosty eyelashes, all they had in mind was to stay by the fireplace and never move away from it again. So that’s what they did. _(“Hey babe.” “Yeah?” “How long have we been cuddling so far?” “All day, but I still don’t want to move.” “Yup, me too.”_ ) This was probably the most time they’ve had together this month, given that December is the time of the year that requires them to accomplish a lot of things in their respective work. They weren’t completely unproductive, if you ask Alex. They’ve mastered the art of multitasking at this point, so kissing and talking about life and munching on sugar cookies at the same time was no difficult feat for them. The only times they went out of their little bubble were when Bea called to greet them both a merry Christmas and when Nora bombarded their group chat with messages to remind the rest of them to follow the theme for this year’s New Year Eve Gala. They were actually more for Pez, who always insists that whatever he decides to wear is the theme.

Alex nudged Henry. “Can you believe it’s almost the anniversary of our first kiss?”

“I still can’t believe you didn’t figure out then that I was trying to tell you I’m gay,” Henry chuckled.

Alex laughed too. “I’m glad that worked out though. I’m glad _we_ worked out,” he said.

Henry’s eyes softened. “Me too, Alex.” Okay. It was time. “Come on,” he grabbed his boyfriend’s hand and dragged him towards their living room where their tree was set-up.

“Oh! I’m finally getting my present? Okay, I’m totally ready.” Alex rubbed his hands as if readying himself.

Henry crouched down and retrieved the smallest one among the presents they’ve accumulated over the past two weeks. Some were from Alex’s friends from law school, some from the kids at Henry’s youth shelter, some from fans (they have those, apparently) that were screened by their security team first of course. He handed it to Alex, hoping that he missed that way Henry’s hand shook a little.

Alex’s eyes lit up as he saw it and immediately began unwrapping the thing. “Aha! Wait, what?” He turned around to Henry for confirmation. Alex may not be the expert at gift-wrapping, but he’s pretty sure you’re supposed to be greeted with a box after tearing off the wrapping paper and not another layer of it.

Henry tried his best to act nonchalant. “Just go ahead.”

This whole thing went on again. And again. Alex was getting impatient now. “You’ve wasted so much wrapping paper and tape on this, I can’t even,” he said exasperatedly.

“You’re almost there.”

“Ha. That’s what—ah, thank god.” Alex was just about to let out an obnoxious _finally_ , but when he saw what was inside, it took him a moment to process that it was a piece of paper. In Henry’s familiar handwriting, it said: _Turn around_. Alex did.

 _Oh_. Henry was—

“Alex,” he started to say. “You are—”

“Yes.”

“Please, just let me—”

“Yes.

“Okay, but I did rehearse this for days, you know. Don’t you want—”

Alex silenced him with a kiss, which Henry returned right away. As he did, he slipped the ring onto Alex’s finger. “Thank you for saying yes,” Henry whispered when they pulled away, their foreheads remained touching.

Alex kissed his nose. “Well, that’s the correct answer to your question, isn’t it? And you know I hate being wrong.”

“On a second thought—”

“Nope, you stuck with me,” Alex says triumphantly. “Forever.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's finally the last one!! thank you all so much for the comments and kudos :) merry christmas, guys!! ❤️


End file.
